Daniels finally catching on with Irish

Sophomore receiver now incorporating ready with willing and able

November 07, 2012|By Brian Hamilton, Chicago Tribune reporter

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — In January, a couple of weeks after Notre Dame's season had ended, DaVaris Daniels alerted his mother to be on the lookout for a package. It was a curious but mostly ordinary request. The delivery itself proved to be no different: A box of four football mouthpieces.

Each was a different color: Blue, green, gold and pink. Daniels' father Phillip, a former Bears defensive end, marveled once he put it all together. After sitting out a season, and with next year nine months away, DaVaris Daniels ordered mouthpieces to match all Irish uniforms. Including the pink one for breast cancer awareness. In October.

The willing and able parts never have been an issue with Daniels, a 6-foot-2-inch sophomore wideout with eruptive athleticism that could supercharge a pass attack. The ready part was another story. But that appears to be changing. If it is, No. 4 Notre Dame will be entirely receptive.

A seven-catch, 86-yard performance against Pittsburgh was Daniels' most complete effort. It reminded everyone that he is negotiating the same learning curve as combustible quarterback Everett Golson, a route that requires patience when no one, least of all Daniels, wants to wait longer than he has.

"It's a lot different, especially going against defenses — everything has slowed down," Daniels said as the Irish prepared for Boston College on Saturday. "It makes a lot more sense to me now. I don't want to say it's easier, but it's starting to fill in and come more natural."

His 15.3 yards per catch is best among Irish players with at least five receptions, and Daniels showcased his team-high 38-inch vertical leap on a dramatic 45-yard reception to set up the game-tying score in regulation against Pittsburgh.

But it's consistency on more mundane plays, like running north-south on simple bubble screens instead of juking at the line, that convinces coaches he's catching on.

"When he runs his routes, he's pretty difficult to defend," Irish coach Brian Kelly said. "He is learning every week about how to be that elite receiver in the BCS. It requires practice preparation, it requires the attention to detail. And he's starting to get there."

Still, even that 45-yard heave from Golson was a marriage of instinct and aptitude. Golson scrambled, more or less demanding receivers break off their patterns.

Daniels was running a middle-through route when he noted the breakdown. He also noted Notre Dame had three receivers on the same level. He also noted Pittsburgh had no safety over the top.

"I turned around and just ran, hoping that Ev would see me," Daniels said. "And he did."

There are still bumps, literally. Daniels went high when attempting to block a full-speed Miami linebacker in pursuit of Golson on Oct. 6 and wound up getting demolished.

His father advised him to aim maybe for the hips. His fellow receivers had a chuckle during film review. But it was a technique mistake on an admirable effort.

"I mean, he was throwing his body out there for Everett," receiver Robby Toma said. "We had a nice laugh, but you can only respect a guy who's willing to do that."

The Irish might have a big-play quarterback and a big-play receiver; it's just that both are in embryonic stages. So when Phillip Daniels' Twitter account detonates with followers wondering how Golson missed a wide-open DaVaris, the father replies: He's young, too.

"You're talking about the same exact guys," Phillip Daniels said. "They're both learning together. Think about all the great years to come, when they finally connect on those plays."

DaVaris Daniels often cried when his father's Bears teams lost. His mother threatened a whupping if DaVaris' protests grew too cheeky. Competitiveness took hold early, it made sitting out as a freshman "very difficult," in Daniels' words, and it inspired a mid-winter order for mouthpieces he wouldn't use until fall.

Daniels always has been an ideal receiver package. Everyone just waited for the arrival.

"I'm way more comfortable," Daniels said. "Learning defenses, learning how to convert routes, how corners are going to play you week in and week out is different. That was tough for me in the beginning. But I think I'm getting it."